Each issue, we hear from an Executive Assistant in a different sector about what unique features shape their role, and those which are universal; in this issue, Lisa Buss shares the joys and challenges of being an EA in the Outward Bound Trust.
I’ll be honest, I fell into being an Assistant. As a teenager, I had big plans to be a solicitor, and when I dropped out of studying law at the end of the first year of my degree, I was without a plan – and that isn’t something that happens to me very often!
I spent a few years in banking and insurance, which didn’t suit my personal values. I wanted out, so I applied for the position of Assistant to the Headteacher of a busy secondary school. I quickly realised that I was made for executive support in people-focussed organisations and so began a career supporting leaders, first in the public and then the third sector.
On my first day as the Assistant, the headteacher told me I “wasn’t there to make [his] coffee” and we quickly established a relationship of trust and mutual respect – something I now know is sadly not a given in our profession. At the SLT (Senior Leadership Team) meetings in the school, I had a seat at the table and was able – invited, even – to share my views, and this shaped me into the Executive Assistant I am today.
When I left the school, I progressed into jobs with greater responsibilities, but the personal connection was missing. So I sought formal qualifications to solidify my experience and to make me a strong candidate when I spotted my ‘dream job’, which was to be an EA in an organisation I fully believed in.
Purpose
All this goes to say, when you work in any charity, it’s important that you believe in the work of your organisation. That’s not to say you won’t do a good job working for The Dogs Trust if you are a cat person, but when you connect with the work and deem it to be important, it makes all the difficult elements much easier to handle because you can always come back to the ‘why’.
Chances are, if you are supporting an executive of a charity, they will be deeply connected to the purpose of the organisation.
The CEO of Outward Bound began his career as an instructor; he has worked his way up through the organisation, which gives him a connection to staff across all areas and ensures he is acutely aware of the importance of the work Outward Bound delivers, but also the impact of every decision he makes – not just on the staff but on the young people we serve.
I wouldn’t be able to support him as well as I do if I did not believe in the purpose of Outward Bound too. I should say here that purpose does not always come from direct personal experience; I am not a parent, nor am I an Outward Bound alumnus, but I believe in the power of the outdoors and I think that young people should learn that as soon as possible, rather than discover it in adulthood like I did.
Sector Challenges
One of the challenges that comes with being so passionate about the work you do in a sector that exists to solve problems for society is that sometimes the burden of responsibility can feel heavy. I think all EAs would recognise the loneliness that can come with the role; you know things before your colleagues, you hear difficult conversations, you offer counsel to your executive.
When you work in a sector that relies on fundraised income, there is no getting away from the fact that every budget is tightly managed and sometimes you will be in meetings where uncomfortable decisions must be made. It is an immense privilege to be working in an organisation that genuinely changes the lives of young people, but it would be an awful lot easier if the cost of living wasn’t ever-increasing, as this both raises the costs for the organisation and reduces people’s ability to make donations to provide support. It’s important as the EA that I stay connected to these changes and the impact it could have on the organisation so that I am in tune with the needs of the leaders having to make the tough decisions.
Not Just Diaries
I’ve mentioned a couple of the unseen bits of my role; the support I provide to the CEO goes beyond managing his diary. I do this, of course, and apply a strategic lens to it to make sure he’s got enough gaps for thinking and doing, as well as all the meetings he must attend. Sometimes he will go rogue and add extra meetings into the gaps I’ve been protecting, and I need to push back to point out to him that a particular task on his to-do list has been on there a while and he won’t get to it if he fills the gaps.
We can have these conversations because he trusts me to have his back, which I do. It’s also what enables me to offer him counsel when things are particularly tough. We are a partnership and we share the responsibility of his job – I help him problem-solve, I make contributions to strategy development, I support staff culture. All these things happen quietly but impactfully, and I hugely value being heard at work.
Variety Is the Spice of Life
No two days are the same in my job – or arguably for any EA – but I’ve found working for a charity to be particularly peculiar at times. I’ve got a page in my OneNote where I write the most unusual ones so that when I’m reflecting on my time at Outward Bound (for appraisals or for writing things like this!), I’ve got reminders.
The most memorable are:
- The day we had to speak to our lawyers because a big Hollywood film referred to an ‘outward bound’ trip in the same way we all say we ‘hoover’ our houses – Outward Bound is a noun, not an adjective.
- The Uber driver who took a national treasure to a street with the correct name but in the wrong district of London after an event and then refused to take them to the right address – stress levels were through the roof on this one. I felt awful!
- Travelling on a train from London Euston to Penrith with a giant (3-ft) crocheted tampon mascot for an International Women’s Day campaign.
In It for the Long Haul
The reason I keep the OneNote pages is because I fully intend to hit long-service milestones at Outward Bound. I’m motivated less by pay (generally, you can expect market rate in the sector, but it will depend on the charity, and not all places can offer full-time roles); I am in it for the difference we make. I may not be hiking with a group of young people to the top of a mountain, but by supporting the CEO and the wider senior team, I am still playing an important part in changing the lives of the 25,000 young people Outward Bound works with each year. I am proud of what we do, and that goes a long way.
3 Things to Know If You’re Considering a Move into the Charity Sector
If you get work in a charity that you connect with on a personal level, the motivation to keep going when it gets tough (which it will) becomes a lot easier. You will also find yourself working alongside likeminded people, which will make it infinitely more enjoyable.
People who work in the charity sector tend to be motivated by purpose and impact rather than financial reward alone. Equally, your colleagues may not care that you work with the executives – everyone is expected (and willing) to muck in to any job that needs doing when you’re up against a deadline.
There will be challenges – the sector exists to solve problems, which can feel a heavy responsibility for your executives, and it can be hard to get funding, which means difficult discussions happen at the board table. However, when you see the support that your charity gives to its beneficiaries firsthand (which I highly recommend you do as often as you can), then it is always worth it.
A Day in My Life
I think any EA would say there is rarely a ‘typical’ day, but here is a flavour of the types of things I get up to…
9:00 a.m.
Log on, check emails for me and my exec, and deal with any quick and easy ones.
9:30 a.m.
Catch up with the CEO. We do this a couple of times a week, and the agenda is part transactional (reviewing our to-do lists and keeping each other on track) and part strategic (what is coming down the tracks and whether we are ready).
11:00 a.m.
Project meeting. I’ve been involved in all sorts of projects at Outward Bound, from organising staff conferences for our 350-strong team to office downsizes and relocations. I’m currently part of working groups looking at organisational culture and internal communications.
12:30 p.m.
Lunchtime walk. On the days I am in the office, there will always be at least a couple of people heading out for a walk – even those of us who have office jobs are connected to the benefits of the outdoors, and the conversations we have when we get away from our desks often spark ideas that develop into much bigger things!
1:00 p.m.
Minutes/report writing. My role is to support both the SMT and the Board of Trustees, so most weeks I’ve either got a set of minutes to produce or a paper to help my exec draft.
3:00 p.m.
Catch up with one of the SMT. Our senior leaders are geographically dispersed, and I speak to them a minimum of once a week to support with basic transactional tasks and to generally keep in touch.
3:30 p.m. onwards
Task time! From inducting new trustees to organising Manager Network meetings, and from hearing about the array of events being organised by our fundraising team to arranging meetings with key stakeholders for the CEO, this is the window where I will get things done, finishing the day with a re-organise of my to-do list, ready to go again tomorrow!
5 Transferrable Skills
1. Patience and emotional intelligence
Change takes time. You will have a lot of stakeholders to manage, and emotions can run high when everyone is deeply connected to the purpose of their work.
2. Policy and process
The sector is heavily governed, and depending on the legal structure of the charity, there can be any number of things that need to be taken care of to remain compliant.
3. Managing upwards
Charities don’t have the budgets to have large executive teams, so executive responsibilities are broad and you will need to support them to not drop any priorities.
4. System development
Connected to the managing upwards, to keep track of all the various plates being spun, you’ll have to create systems that work for you, your executive(s), and the organisation as a whole.
5. Networking
This is a skill valuable to all charity workers, because you never know where a conversation will lead. This list, for example, was written after a conversation with my fellow PACE (PAs to Charity Executives) Network members, whom I value enormously.
